Little Bear Peak

One of the main risks of this standard route on Little Bear is being in the Hourglass section and having rockfall rain down from above. While climbers often navigate the upper route without dislodging rocks, the risk increases with more people on the route. Coordinate with others upon reaching the Hourglass, use safety zones for breaks, and move promptly through the narrow section. If you're interested in an alternative to the Hourglass, take a look at the "West Ridge Indirect" variation which has recently gained popularity and is now on the site.

From Colorado 160, east of Alamosa, turn north onto Colorado 150 toward Great Sand Dunes National Park. Drive over 3 miles and turn right onto Lake Como road (aka Blanca Peak road). The type of vehicle you are driving will determine how high you can park. Most cars can drive about 1.5 miles up before it gets rough. 4WD SUVs and trucks can slowly make it 3.25 miles to several pull-offs at 8,800', before the road turns nasty. This is a popular parking spot and almost gets you to within 4 miles of Lake Como. If you have a high-clearance, small, 4WD vehicle you might be able to drive to 10,000' but you'll find very few places to park. An ATV, UTV or modified jeep/crawler can get to Lake Como, depending on the driver.

First, hike up the nasty Lake Como/Blanca Peak road to reach the lake, at 11,750'. Little Bear Peak dominates the view to the east. Viewing Little Bear's west ridge, locate a gully that leads to a notch in the ridge -  1 and  2. You'll use this gully to gain the west ridge. Staying on the road, continue around the lake and back into the forest. Near 11,900', exit the forest, drop slightly, and look for a cairn on the right -  3. Leave the road, cross a stream, and follow cairns onto a talus pile. Continue up to 12,000' where the gully comes into view -  4. Continue across talus and climb into the gully, following cairns and/or faint trail segments. It's fairly steep and loose, so care must be taken not to roll rocks. Once you reach the confines of the gully, the easiest way up is usually on the right side -  5. Reach the top of the gully near 12,600', at a notch in the west ridge -  6.

Turn left (east), climb out of the notch, and begin maneuvering along the south side of the west ridge -  7. Staying below the ridge crest most of the time, look for trail segments and cairns. Approximately 1/4 mile after leaving the notch, bypass the top of a 12,960-foot ridge point to see the route ahead -  8. Descend slightly to a notch in the ridge where you'll notice a gully that drops to your right. Continue traversing east -  9,  10. With cliffs up to your left, continue to 13,300' and the base of the Hourglass gully -  11. To this point, the route has barely exceeded Difficult Class 2, but that's about to change. The Hourglass and southwest face require Class 3 and 4 climbing, with a high risk of rockfall, so take a careful look at the weather and turn back if you don't think you'll have enough time to summit and return to this point before weather rolls in.

Climb the initial rock slabs to reach a couple of orange rock veins, just below the choke in the Hourglass -  12,  13. As you peer up the Hourglass, you may see a fixed rope. An existing rope may be helpful for support, but it's not a great idea to rely on it without having inspected the condition of the entire rope and its anchor. Be on high alert for rockfall from this point forward and start climbing -  14,  15. You may encounter water or ice, which may force you to climb along the side. Continue up steep, smooth, solid rock to reach an anchor area and top of a fixed rope, if present -  16,  17. From this point, there are two main options: LEFT or RIGHT. The LEFT option is more stable, holds less loose rock but is a bit complex. The RIGHT option starts out steep, then fairly straightforward, but has a lot of loose rock. If the face is mostly snow-covered, the RIGHT option is best. If it's dry, stay LEFT.

LEFT OPTION: From the anchor area, climb left a short distance -  18. Follow a vein of orange rock and then left toward the (west) ridge crest, or stay slightly right below the ridge crest -  19. After nearly 200 feet of climbing, angle right to bypass steep rock on the west ridge -  20. As you traverse away from the ridge, climb to a wall that's about 10 feet high -  21,  22. Above the wall, climb left to continue higher. Next, there are a couple of options and you may find cairns on each -  23. Choose your line carefully and continue higher -  24. After some steep climbing, you'll finally each the summit -  25,  31,  32.

RIGHT OPTION: From the anchor area, climb right a short distance to the base of steep, angled slabs -  26. You have a few choices here, but all require nearly 100 feet of steep climbing -  27. Above this pitch, you'll find a lot of loose rock hanging above the Hourglass -  28. With great care, continue higher as the pitch gradually becomes more straightforward. For the final 300 feet, follow the path of least resistance to reach the summit -  29 and  30.

Skiing Little Bear demands proper planning and solid extreme skiing skills. You should also be comfortable climbing steep snow and Class 3/4 terrain while carrying skis on your back and wearing crampons. While it may not be as steep or exposed as Crestone Needle, Pyramid, or Capitol, Little Bear ranks among the hardest 14er ski descents. Approach it with caution and do not take it lightly.

This loose, dangerous route is one of the most difficult standard 14er routes and climbing it on a busy weekend is not recommended.